Dear Friends of New Orleans & Company,
It has been a busy few weeks for New Orleans & Company and our partners. As you know, the Legislative Session is ongoing. Your team has been busy working to address a myriad of issues involving Short Term Rentals and their proliferation throughout our community. In one bill, we are working to eliminate confusion on what taxes are being collected and remitted, create transparency and consistency, and ensure the city and state are receiving proper collections. We also need to balance traveler demand for products such as Airbnb, with preserving the cultural authenticity of our neighborhoods. We are working with other legislators to continue to provide tools to citizens and our local governments to properly enforce laws that preserve and protect our neighborhoods. We will keep you posted as we continue to work through the remainder of the session, scheduled to come to a close in early June.
I hope you had an opportunity to watch CBS Sunday Morning this past weekend for a beautiful tribute to our culture, which was organized by New Orleans & Company as part of our strategy to earn positive media coverage.
While CBS News made final editorial decisions, our Associate VP of Public Relations Mary Beth Romig conducted a site visit shortly after Mardi Gras to assist them in selecting sites. She also acted as their on- the-ground production assistant and problem-solver while filming with legendary anchor Jane Pauley and other CBS correspondents.
The show aired Sunday, May 18 at 8:00 am CST, with six million viewers and another 12 million online. It included stories exclusively tied to New Orleans, including fashion, food and design, set in places unmistakably New Orleans. To watch, please click here.
Everything we do at New Orleans & Company is designed to inspire, promote and encourage travel to our city for the economic, social and community benefit of New Orleans and its people. Below are some of the high points of the work our team is doing toward our strategic goals.
Strategic Goal One: Deliver the Most Innovative and Exceptional Sales and Service
- The Convention Sales team achieved 135% of their 468,000-room night goal with 632,263 room nights booked in the first four months of 2025. The team continues to book business in the short and long term, with bookings into the year 2040.
- They also hosted 43 meeting planners for two highly successful Immersive Destination Experiences in April and May. In addition to hotel site visits and a tour of the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, guests enjoyed lunch at the Caesars Superdome, a private concert and a second line led by a local high school marching band that truly “blew the group away.” The experience concluded with a visit to the New Orleans hospitality tent at Jazz Fest, where guests experienced New Orleans culture in its truest form. A post-trip survey revealed a 100% “excellent” rating for the overall experience. The significant increase in destination favorability and booking likelihood underscores the success of this carefully curated program. Dozens of new business opportunities have resulted from these immersive experiences.
Strategic Goal Two: Make New Orleans a Great Place to Live, Work and Visit
- The 10th anniversary Job Fest will be June 3 at the Joy Theater. Job Fest was the creation of the late Cheryl Teamer, our beloved colleague who was so passionate about connecting our community with career opportunities.
- Our team participated in the 2025 Tourism Day at the Louisiana State Capitol along with the Louisiana Travel Association and many state partners.
- Thanks to everyone who made our 2025 National Travel and Tourism Week a success. Our luncheon on May 8th welcomed nearly 600 people, featuring a live broadcast from WWL Radio’s Newell Normand, and speeches from NOPD Superintendent Kirpatrick and Lt Governor Nungesser. Congratulations to our lifetime/legacy award honorees the Chase Family, Stephen Perry, Mark Romig and Industry Champions Bobby Green, Sheryl Goffner and Bobbi Mannino. We also debuted a new video on the role of New Orleans & Company, which can be found here.
- Watch our recap video here, courtesy of Hometown Productions.
Strategic Goal Three: Create and Own a Clear, World-Class Brand for New Orleans
-
Last week, our PR team set up a two-day statewide media tour for me in Shreveport, Monroe, Lafayette, and Baton Rouge to discuss the economic power of tourism. Interviews included how we are working to leverage upcoming events such as America’s 250th birthday and the FIFA 2026 World Cup in nearby cities such as Dallas and Houston, and hoping to translate that into business for New Orleans and the rest of the state. Here is one segment from WBRZ-TV in Baton Rouge.
Strategic Goal Four: Restore International Tourism
- Senior Account Executive Olivia Markase attended Brand USA Canada Connect East in Toronto and Montreal recently. The goal was to strengthen partnerships with the Canadian travel industry through one-on-one meetings and networking events with a total of 90 tour operators, top travel agents, airlines and travel trade media. We reminded our Canadian clients that their travelers will be welcomed when visiting our diverse and inclusive destination.
- Director of Tourism Thu Tran hosted five top-producing tour operators from Germany for a familiarization tour of New Orleans in April. Thu was joined by Debbie Theis, Managing Director for Weichmann Tourism Services, our Germany representation firm. Together they educated the travel buyers on how to best sell New Orleans to their customer base.
Have a great Memorial Day weekend and we will talk soon. My next update will include our accelerated plans to drive summer business. Thanks for your partnership.
Sincerely,
Walter J. Leger III
President & CEO
New Orleans & Company